Personal watercraft orifice injury mitigation system

ABSTRACT

A personal watercraft orifice injury mitigation system comprising: a passenger lanyard  9  with a key  10  and attachment  11  at opposite ends of said lanyard  9 ; a kill switch  12 , where the key  10  is inserted into the kill switch  12  and the attachment  11  is attached to a passenger on the personal watercraft; electrical contacts  14  attached to the kill switch  12  and a controller/logic circuit  15 , wherein if the passenger falls of the personal watercraft the key  10  activates the control logic circuit  15 , such that if the personal watercraft is traveling less than X mph the kill switch  12  shuts off the engine so that there is no high energy water jet that exits the rear of the personal watercraft thus eliminating the possibility of serious orifice injuries that would be caused by passenger interaction with the high energy water jet.

This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 62/755,492 filed Nov. 4, 2018 which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a system to protect passengers riding on personal watercraft (PWC's) otherwise known as Jet Skis. More specifically, the addition of a passenger kill switch activated by a lanyard is used in conjunction with a ‘controller’ and a signal read from the PWC's speedometer. The combination of these devices serves to stop the possible interaction between an ejected passenger and the PWC's high energy water jet. This interaction can cause serious injuries to passengers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Numerous PWC passengers have suffered horrific anorectal and vaginal injuries after falling off the PWC and into the path of the high energy water jet exiting the back of the PWC. Typically, this occurs as the PWC accelerates from idle or low speed requiring the passenger to generate large restraining forces. If the passenger cannot generate these forces or simply loses their grip they can ultimately fall from the rear of the PWC. U.S. Pat. No. 10,062,529 to Barker discloses a device that stops an engine when the operator of a motorized vehicle, such as a jet ski, go-cart or other like vehicle fallsoff the vehicle. The operator has a lanyard attached to their person and a kill switch on the motorized machine. Activation of the kill switch arrangement shuts off the motor drive of the vehicle preventing a runaway vehicle from continuing out of control and causing potential injuries and/or damage. The Barker assembly is however only for the operator of the vehicle and not the passengers.

The general object of this invention is to provide a second ‘ kill switch’ installed on the PWC. This kill switch is primed by the insertion of a ‘key’ attached to a lanyard that is, in turn, securely attached to the passenger. The operator of the PWC already has their own lanyard kill switch arrangement which is unaffected by this invention and remains a primary safety feature of the PWC.

The new additional ‘ kill switch’ is wired to a controller/logic circuit that receives a second input signal from the PWC's speedometer. The speedometer signal will be processed to ether be a logic ‘1’ or ‘TRUE’ indicative of the PWC speed being below a nominal value. (e.g. 15 mph). Alternatively, if the speed of the PWC is above this nominal value then the processed signal will be a logic ‘0’ or ‘FALSE’. When a passenger falls off the PWC the lanyard will remove the ‘key’ from the passenger kill switch and turn the signal from this switch from a logic ‘0’ to a logic ‘1’. At this point the two inputs to the controller/logic circuit are both ‘1’ or ‘True’ and so the controller will only now activate the same ‘engine’ kill circuitry as the operator's kill switch. This will immediately shut the PWC engine down and stop the high energy jet. As the PWC is moving slowly, (i.e. less than the nominal velocity), the deceleration of the PWC, which may be unexpected for the operator, will not cause undue control issues and their assorted dangers for the operator and remaining passengers. This low speed ejection is also the time when the ejected passenger is most likely to interact with the jet as the PWC will not have moved very far from the passenger in the time it takes to fall into the path of the high energy water jet. The jet will therefore not have dissipated much of its energy and hence, this is the time that injury is most likely to occur and the water jet needs to be shut down.

No other systems are currently available to protect the ejected passenger. Currently the manufacturers simply recommend the wearing of protective clothing such as wet suits. A recommendation that is most frequently ignored.

Another object of the invention is therefore to effectively eliminate the high energy water jet from the path of the ejected passenger and hence prevent the resulting injuries. This invention does this while at the same time preventing dangers resulting from the accidental severe braking of the PWC if the passenger is ejected at higher speeds or if the passenger accidentally disengages the lanyard key from the kill switch. Interaction of an ejected passenger at high PWC speeds with the high energy water jet is less likely as the PWC moves much further away from the passenger in the time it takes the passenger to fall vertically into the jet.

Yet another object of the invention is that the device is suitable for all multi-person personal water craft devices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In the present invention, these purposes, as well as others which will be apparent, are achieved generally by providing a passenger kill switch for use in personal watercraft vehicles comprising a lanyard with a ‘key’, a kill switch with a logic signal output, a logic signal from the PWC speedometer based on a nominal speed and a controller/logic circuit with an output to the existing engine circuitry.

The choice of a transition ‘nominal’ speed for which the passenger activation of the kill switch ceases can vary depending on PWC type. Typically, this would be approximately 15 to 20 mph. Above this nominal speed the ejected passenger would simply fall into the water and the PWC engine would continue to operate with the operator on board.

A personal watercraft orifice injury mitigation system is also provided that comprises a passenger lanyard 9 with a key 10 and attachment 11 at opposite ends of said lanyard 9; and a kill switch 12. The key 10 is inserted into the kill switch 12 and the attachment 11 is attached to a passenger's wrist or leg on the personal watercraft. Electrical contacts 14 attached to the kill switch 12 and a controller/logic circuit 15.

If the passenger falls of the personal watercraft the key 10 activates the control logic circuit 15, such that if the personal watercraft is traveling less than x mph the kill switch 12 shuts the engine off so that there is no high energy water jet exiting the rear of the personal watercraft thus eliminating the potential for orifice injuries that would be caused by the high energy water jet.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent when the detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention are considered with reference to the drawings, which should be construed in an illustrative and not a limiting sense.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a current design PWC with the passenger ejected from the rear of the PWC and coming into contact with the high energy water jet of the PWC;

FIG. 2 is an illustration of the invention illustrating a passenger kill switch and its shutting down of the water jet;

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of the logic circuitry for the passenger kill switch for the PWC. This circuitry can be realized with numerous circuits, integrated circuit designs, and simple logic gates etc. such as shown in FIGS. 4,5 and 6.

FIG. 4 illustrates a micro controller used in the invention;

FIG. 5 illustrates a transistor type ‘AND’ gate used in the invention;

FIG. 6 illustrates an I/C “AND” Gate used in the invention. FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 are examples of controllers and logic circuits/components with which to perform the logic functions described in this invention.

FIG. 7 is an illustration of a typical lanyard, key and arm, leg, or waist strap. Also shown is a possible kill switch design with key inserted.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As used in the invention herein, the following numbers refer to the representative structures as illustrated in the drawings:

-   -   1—personal watercraft (“PWC”) or jet ski;     -   2—operator lanyard to engine kill switch;     -   3—high energy water stream;     -   4—passenger lanyard to engine kill switch;     -   5—controller/logic circuit with input from PWC speedometer;     -   6—micro controller device;     -   7—transistor type ‘AND’ gate;     -   8—IC ‘AND’ gate;     -   9—lanyard;     -   10—passenger key for kill switch;     -   11—wrist or leg band attachment or clip for passenger lanyard;     -   12—kill switch;     -   13—spring on kill switch, this forces contact across switch when         key 10 is pulled out of switch 12;     -   14—electrical contacts in kill switch that enable logic TRUE         voltage to be sent to controller/logic circuit; and     -   15—controller/logic circuit.

FIG. 1 illustrates the existing problem to be corrected by the invention device. As shown in FIG. 1 two passengers are sitting on a personal watercraft 1 (referred to herein as “PWC”) and also known as a jet ski. In conventional PWC only the operator of the PWC has an operator lanyard 2 attached to the engine kill switch. So, if the operator of the PWC falls off the PWC the kill switch is activated and shuts the engine down.

However, passengers on the PWC's can be ejected when the PWC accelerates from idle and low speeds. In these instances, the passenger can impact the water in close proximity to the back side of the PWC where the high energy water jet 3 is located.

The ejected passenger falls to the back of the PWC and interacts with high energy water jet exiting the rear of the PWC. This can cause serious “orifice injuries”. The orientation of the passenger and their proximity to the PWC can cause the high energy water jet to impact the groin area and enter anorectal and vaginal orifices causing catastrophic internal injuries.

Operators currently have an operator lanyard 2 attached to a kill switch to stop PWC ‘runaway’ if the operator falls off. But there is nothing to protect the passenger from an interaction with the high energy water jet if and when they fall off. A lanyard is just a cord with a loop or attachment (e.g Velcro) which the user can place over or attach to their neck, shoulder, foot, wrist or attach to their clothing (see FIG. 7). One end of the lanyard is attached to the passenger or operator and the other is attached to a key which primes a kill switch.

The invention addresses and solves the problem described above and as illustrated in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the invention provides a second Lanyard, or passenger lanyard, and a second kill switch 4 attached to the passenger. The location of this kill switch is varied depending on PWC model but in all cases this second switch is connected to a lanyard secured to the passenger. No matter what the configuration, the passenger kill switch is actuated by the removal of a key from the kill switch. The key is pulled out by a lanyard attached to the ejected passenger. An activation of the kill switch by the passenger at high PWC speeds however, can result in an uncontrolled or unwanted braking event which can cause other serious injuries-to the operator and passenger(s). To avoid this, the passenger kill switch signal is first passed to a controller/logic circuit 5 which has a second input from the PWC speedometer.

FIG. 3 illustrates the logic performed in the controller for passenger and operator kill switches. To successfully stop the engine, the passenger kill switch signal must therefore be activated in conjunction with a signal from the PWC speedometer indicating a speed of less than X mph. The magnitude of X mph is determined for specific PWC types. Typically, from actual testing undertaken, this speed is of the order of 15 to 20 mph. Only if these two conditions are TRUE will the engine be shut off. This circuitry can be realized with numerous circuits, integrated circuit designs, and simple logic gates etc. such as shown in FIGS. 4,5 and 6.

As a result of the kill switch activation and the time it then takes for the passenger to transit through the air and impact the water, the high energy water jet is cut off. Hence preventing the orifice injury previously described:

It is noted that at higher than X mph speeds the PWC is travelling at such a velocity that when the passenger impacts the water the PWC has moved considerably further away from the passenger than at low speed. As such the high energy jet is somewhat dissipated and the injury risks are diminished. Hence the risk imposed by a rapid braking of the PWC on the operator is not required.

Note that if an accidental activation of the passenger kill switch occurs without passenger ejection an audible/visual alarm may be activated by the controller to reset the passenger Lanyard. These subtleties are possible with a microcontroller.

FIG. 4 illustrates a micro controller device 6 which can be used in the invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates transistor type “AND” gate 7.

FIG. 6 illustrates an IC “AND” gate 8.

These are examples of controllers and logic circuits/components with which to perform logic functions described in this invention. Although other similar devices with the same functionality can be used.

FIG. 7 describes the components of the invention passenger kill switch configuration. As shown the basic components include a lanyard 9, key 10 and strap 11. The kill switch design with the key inserted is also shown in the lower portion of FIG. 7.

As shown in FIG. 7, the passenger kill switch for use in personal watercraft vehicles includes a lanyard 9 attached to a ‘key’ 10; a kill switch 12 ‘primed’ by the key attached to the lanyard. A microcontroller/logic circuit 15 is present that will receive logic signals from the kill switch 12 and the PWC speedometer via electrical contacts 14. This microcontroller can vary in complexity, being a simple I/C ‘AND’ gate, a pair of transistors or incorporated into a more elaborate microcontroller performing other functions on the PWC. In performing the ‘AND’ function the microcontroller ensures that the engine is only stopped by the passenger when the passenger key switch is activated and the PWC speed is below X mph. Typically the speed of the PWC is presented on an instrument/display to the operator after being calculated from voltage/current signals from a Pitot type transducer mounted on the PWC. If this transducer is not present then one will have to be added to the PWC or an alternate means of speed calculation will be needed.

Signals from the passenger kill switch are set to logic ‘0’ or ‘FALSE’, when the key is primed. This logic signal changes to logic ‘1’ or ‘TRUE’ when the passenger kill switch is activated by removal of the key attached to the lanyard and the ejected passenger.

The signal from the PWC speedometer/existing circuitry will be set at logic ‘1’ when the PWC is below a ‘low’ nominal speed. This speedometer signal changes to a logic ‘0’ when the speed is above this nominal X mph only returning to 1’ when the PWC speed again drops below X mph.

The combination of these two input signals means the PWC engine and the high energy jet are only stopped when a passenger is ejected at low speed. This is the most dangerous time and when nearly all water jet interaction injuries occur. This logic also ensures that the PWC engine is not shut down at high speed when a passenger is ejected or accidentally activates their kill switch. This would present assorted dangers to the operator due to the unexpected and rapid deceleration.

The addition of this passenger safety system will significantly reduce the possibilities of serious and horrific orifice type injuries currently sustained by numerous PWC passengers.

Calculations and experimental testing of the jet velocity's and distribution provide evidence to support the benefits of the invention device. A PWC with a 100 horsepower engine was calculated as having a jet velocity in excess of 60 mph. Experimental tests on this same PWC in actual operation confirmed water jet velocities of this magnitude. This water velocity can be converted into a stagnation pressure of over 50 p.s.i that could then be generated in internal human orifices. Putting this in perspective, studies have shown that a pressure of the order of only 5 p.s.i can cause serious internal injuries.

Tests of passenger dynamics and kinematics also provide evidence to support the benefits of the invention device. Using the same 100 horsepower PWC numerous tests were taken to show how on ejection after high speed acceleration a passenger can easily fall into the path of the exit jet.

The foregoing description of various and preferred embodiments of the present invention has been provided for purposes of illustration only, and it is understood that numerous modifications, variations and alterations may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as set forth in the following claims. 

1. A passenger kill switch for use in personal watercraft vehicles comprising: a lanyard (9) with a key (10); a kill switch (12) with a logic signal output; a logic signal from the personal watercraft speedometer based on a nominal speed and a controller logic circuit (15) with an output to engine kill circuitry; wherein said lanyard (9) is attached to the passenger on one end and said key (9) is inserted into said kill switch (12).
 2. The passenger kill switch according to claim 1, wherein when a passenger falls off the personal watercraft and said key (10) separates from said kill switch (12) such that at low speeds, less than X mph, said controller logic circuit (15) stops the high energy water jet from exiting the vehicle.
 3. The passenger kill switch according to claim 2, wherein said low speeds, X mph, are approximately 15 to 20 mph. To be determined more precisely for each model of PWC by testing.
 4. A personal watercraft orifice injury mitigation system comprising: a passenger lanyard (9) with a key (10) and attachment (11) at opposite ends of said lanyard (9); a kill switch (12), wherein said key (10) is inserted into said kill switch (12) and said attachment (11) is attached to a passenger on the personal watercraft; electrical contacts (14) attached to said kill switch (12) and a controller/logic circuit (15), wherein if the passenger falls of the personal watercraft the key (10) activates the control logic circuit (15), such that if the personal watercraft is traveling less than x mph the kill switch (12) shuts off the engine of so that there is no high energy water jet that exist the rear of the personal watercraft thus eliminating orifice injuries that would be caused by the high energy water jet.
 5. The personal watercraft orifice injury mitigation system according to claim 4, wherein X is approximately 15 to 20 mph. 